The
speed that computer can send data to other devices is very important.
Each year, software and backups for many consumers and businesses
grow in size and the huge amount of HD media consumed expands as
well. With the increased file sizes being streamed to external
devices and sent to external storage, faster connectivity options are
needed.

The first step in faster communications between a
computer and external devices is USB 3.0. This faster port is still
not widespread in machines today because there are no motherboard
chipsets with USB 3.0 integrated – motherboards that do support 3.0
use costly add-in chips. There are a number of add-in
cards and adapters available that let manufacturers and
end-users utilize USB 3.0 though.

Intel is already looking
past USB 3.0 to an even faster method of transferring data and to and
from a computer that uses optical signals called Light
Peak. These optical cables will at first be used side-by-side in
machines with USB 3.0, though Intel does believe Light Peak is the
logical successor to USB 3.0.

Intel's Kevin Kahn said, "We
view this as a logical future successor to USB 3.0. In some sense
we'd... like to build the last cable you'll ever need."

The
most interesting feature of Light Peak is that the cable is capable
of supporting many protocols at the same time. For instance, the
single Light Peak optical cable can support USB and SATA
simultaneously. The cable also has enough bandwidth to stream a full
HD digital movie, a feed from a HD camera, and duplicate the desktop
of a laptop all at once.

A prototype laptop featuring Light
Peak was on display at a speech Kahn gave at IDF in Beijing. The
prototype used a USB 3.0 port with extra hardware to allow it to
detect optical transmissions. The port can also be connected to
standard USB 3.0 hardware as well.

Light Peak is capable of
transferring data at 10Gbps, enough bandwidth to stream a full-length
Blu-ray film in 30 seconds. Intel believes that the speed could be
upped to ten times that 10Gbps number in the next ten years. Light
Peak will be available late this year and partners will start
shipping devices using Light Peak next year.

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I was expecting someone to post this. I am sure that Intel will provide a means to send power too over the same cable, i.e. Copper wire for power and Fiber Optic for data transmission. If not then this will be DOA otherwise imho.

I doubt they would introduce an integrated electrical solution into the same cable. It doesn't do much good for the cable overall.

1) You'd almost have to have several types introduced where the electrical wire part are designed to cater to the different power situations this technology could otherwise cover. As example a monitor, GPU and a HDD does have quite different power requirements I believe. And sub-categories and different standards within the same cable is bad for the simplicity and the adoption of the technology.

2) Adding electrical components will disable the favourable intrinsics that a pure optical transmission would have. You would hence again have to design with electrical noise and EMI susceptibility and such in mind just like for any other electrical cable to be used in consumer market.

I do not think this Light Peak tech will ever host any integrated power transmission capability; unless heavily augmenting technology where you excite electrons by wavelengths found in the fiber optic spectrum makes a giant leap into the consumer market, or something equally unlikely occurs.

But a DOA tech? Nah, far from it. Compare to any of the xATA-cables out there; they have all had power separate and they're still successful.

So I hold true to my above statement; This tech will not make all other cables obsolete, but it is a welcomed introduction none the less.

Now hurry and integrate it to the PCB so that we can advance the field of optical on-chip communication buses too!

1) I'm sure your monitors and 3.5" hdd enclosures will still require an external power supply. Intel is probably just pushing to run enough power for things like a usb key or 2.5" hdd. The same kind of thing we are doing now.

It'd be stupid to try and power a monitor, 3.5" hdds, etc through the cable. It'd mean, we'd need large PSUs inside our computers, as they'd have to power these other external devices.

2) You don't lose anything. The fiber will be the only data transmission line. The copper line is purely just for power purposes.